Honours Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour with the Music Cognition Specialization is a multidisciplinary program that brings together science and the arts in a unique and innovative way. Students will study:• how the auditory and motor systems interact to produce music• how people encode and recognize music• how music induces emotional reactions• how musical experience and training affect brain development• how musical training/exposure affects language, cognitive, and social abilities in both children and adults.Students who have graduated from this program have pursued careers in such areas as psychology, music therapy, and audiology/speech pathology.

ADMISSION

Admission to the program requires Advanced Rudiments (or Grade 2 Rudiments) from the Royal Conservatory of Music (RCM) (with a grade of at least 80% within the last two years), or MUSIC 1C03 (with a grade of at least 75%), or a grade of at least 65% on a qualifying music theory exam administered by the School of the Arts (SOTA).Enrolment in this program is limited and possession of the published minimum requirements does not guarantee admission. Selection is based on academic achievement but requires, as a minimum, completion of any Level I program with a Grade Point Average of at least 5.0 including:3 units PSYCH 1XX3 with a grade of at least B- 3 units from BIOLOGY 1A03, 1M03, 1P03 or credit in Grade 12 Bio U3 units from MATH 1A03, 1LS3, 1M033 units from MUSIC 1A03, 1AA3 (See Note 3)NOTE: PSYCH 1X03 or 1F03 must be completed by end of Level II, but Psych 1X03 is recommended in Level I.

NOTES

1. One of MUSIC 1A03 or 1AA3 is required for admission, however, completion of both are required by the end of Level IV.2. Students who have completed Grade 3 History (History 1) or Grade 5 History (History 3) from the RCM with a grade of at least 70%, are not required to complete Music 1AA3, and those students who have similarly obtained at least 70% on RCM Grade 4 History (History 2) are not required to complete Music 1A03 either for admission to the Music Cognition Specialization or to fulfill their degree requirements. 3. Entrance into MUSIC 1CA3 requires Advanced Rudiments (or Grd. 2) from RCM (a grade of 80% or above, within last 2 years) or MUSIC 1C03 (at least 75%) or 65% or above on a qualifying music theory exam administered by SOTA. Appointments can be made with SOTA to write the exam on specific dates between February and May. The content of the exam is summarized at: http://sota.humanities.mcmaster.ca/4. . Students who have completed Harmony 4 (Grade 4 Theory) from the RCM, with a grade of at least 70%, can receive advance credit for MUSIC 1CA3 (Theory & AnalysisI).

LIVE Auditory Laboratory (in the Psychology Building)The McMaster Institute for Music and the Mind (MIMM) has a new unique research-based performance theatre and testing centre. The LIVE (Large Interactive Virtual Environment) Auditory Lab is the only facility of this exact kind in the world.• Features a 100-seat specially constructed performance hall • Ability to measure brain responses (dense array EEG) from several performers at a time • Has motion capture equipment to see how musicians and dancers coordinate movements.• Ability to measure physiological responses such as heart rate and breathing rate in audience members